If you bought a car in November odds are you paid more than you would have at almost any time in the past year. Transaction prices – what motorists actually spend after working in incentives and factory options – are at or near record levels.
That’s despite the fact that many manufacturers increased givebacks last month, hoping to keep sales momentum going. They’ve also been working with lenders to ensure that credit continues to become more readily available – though motorists have been stretching out loans and are now taking an average of 64 months to pay off a car purchase.
“Industry average transaction prices climb once again with consumers’ continued appetite for highly contended vehicles,” said Jesse Toprak, Senior Analyst at the data tracking service TrueCar. “Today’s consumers value a nicely equipped vehicle as much as they do a low cost of ownership. Automakers are getting better at providing all the modern conveniences consumers come to expect for more of their models, resulting in higher overall prices hence improved profitability.”





